Author: Lara
Give Me Some Nude Lip – Take 4
I am such a sucker for Sephora’s curated lip sets. I don’t know if it is the lipstick or the little lip shaped box that they come in. I’d say it was the box, but I REALLY wanted one of those lippies. So I got the new Sephora Favorites Give Me Some Nude Lip Set ($28).
The one I really wanted? NARS Lipstick in “Orgasm”. I had gotten a deluxe sample of NARS Orgasm Blush a while back and it is one of my favorites – all the hype is true – it is universally flattering. I actually put on makeup for the first time in weeks yesterday, just so I could see the blush and lipstick together – heavenly.
Also in the the glittery white lip box: Hourglass Girl Lip Stylo in “Futurist”; Buxom Full-On Lip Polish in “Sugar” (really just a sheer gloss); Tarte Tarteist Quick Dry Matte Lip Paint in “Exposed” (I love a basic brown matte); Urban Decay Cosmetics Vice Special Effects in “Fever” (I’d be more impressed if these weren’t on clearance for $9 everywhere); and Smashbox Cosmetics Be Legendary Lip Pigment in “Mauve Wife” (this will be my fave – it’s like a cross between Lolita and Androgyny!)
Oh, and no dupes! I didn’t have any of these lippies!
I also used this order to get my Sephora Birthday gift – I chose the GlamGlow set with GlamGlow SuperMud Clearing Treatment and GlowStarter Mega Illuminating Moisturizer. My other chose was some Bite Beauty Lipstick – meh.
Can we talk about samples? Even though I got the 2 deluxe samples I used a special code for – it Cosmetics Confidence in a Cleanser (divine) and Miu Miu L’eau Rosee (not a straight rose, but like running through an unkempt rose garden with roses and whatever happens to be growing there) – I DID NOT get my other samples. This is the third time in a row!
First I emailed Customer Service again, they quickly apologized qand gave me 225 points. That’s nice and all, but not a solution. I took to twitter and then DMed with Sephora. They admitted it’s been an ongoing issue, blah blah blah. I can tell you what the issue is – the samples are no longer showing up on the pick list that shows up in my box. I’ve been using the app to order, so next order will be placed online and we’ll see if that helps..
$932 to Rouge…but $282 to VIB Insider is more likely.
February 2018 Julep Maven Box – Eyes For You
Even thought it was just days before my surgery, I got in there and chose my polishes for February.
The new beauty product for February was an eye cream, but I don’t really fuck with eye creams, so I went for all polishes instead. I chose It Girl “Norah” – oxide red shimmer (I thought it was “Laurie” when I saw it in the box – it seems very similar); Wonder Maven “Pia” – spiced burgundy iridescent shimmer (whoa dude); and Boho Glam “Emmy” – olive ghost shimmer (it looks like rose leaves to me). I also got TWO sheets of gold rose decals – TWO! I’m really looking forward to trying all these polishes.
The candy is also back – I got a single milk chocolate heart.
Not a Julep Maven? Click HERE to join – I’ll get a $15 credit and you’ll get your first box free!
Geri
Julep “Geri” is absolutely depressing. I didn’t even know that nail polish could be depressing…but yeah, it sure as fuck can. It’s not ugly depressing, it’s quite beautiful…but it feel like I’m getting ready for a funeral, or even worse – a job interview.
“Geri” is one of the Wonder Maven polishes, named for an inspiring woman…but I couldn’t find anything on Julep’s Blog about a “Geri.” Weird.
“Geri” was thicker than I like in a creme polish – this is two coats over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and under Glisten Glow Base Coat. I’m gonna try it with glitter next time. Glitter is never depressing.
Sephora Play January 2018 – Happy You Year!
It’s January 31st, I had major surgery and I am still managing to cover all my January boxes in January. High Five!
This month’s “Happy You Year” bag is filled with products to revitalize. The first thing I squealed over is the GlamGlow SuperCleanse Clearing Cream-to-Foam Cleanser – I LOVE GlamGlow!
Also in this month’s bag: Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair Deep Conditioning Mask (just a foil pack, boo); Lancome Cils Booster Super-Enhancing Mascara Booster (don’t care); Smashbox Photo FInish Primerizer (primer AND moisturizer – genius!); Ole Henriksen Hygge HydraClay Detox Mask (I love me some masks); and Clinique Pep-Start Eye Cream.
No fragrance though – boo!
If you don’t get Sephora Play, sign up TODAY. Sephora Play is only $10/month. You can sign up at sephora.com/play.
True Blue
I’m back! After a full mastectomy and reconstruction, I thought I’d be out of commission longer. Don’t get me wrong – I walk about as fast a turtle and can barely move – but sure can paint my fingernails.
Before I got started, I went ahead and trimmed and buffed my nails, so that I’d have a good canvas to start from. My ringer finger and pinkys were getting long, so those took the most trim.
My daughter had already picked a color for my toes, which she would be painting for me later. She chose LVX “Haitus True Blue” – a special edition polish released at Hiatus Spa + Retreat. I think one of my aunt’s gave it to her for Xmas, so I guess that’s how she ended up with it? I’d never tried LVX polishes before – this one is pretty nice. It’s a bit thicket than I’m used to, but still workable. The first coat had streaks, but the second coat leveled out and gave beautiful coverage. I started with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat and ended with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I wanna say that this blue is the same “True Blue” as the Madonna cassette. For real, I have the cassette tape underneath my bed, but I don’t have the mobility to go check. If I ask my husband to look, he’ll want to start trashing the stuff I have hidden under there. I checked Google though and Google agrees with me.
Milk Chocolate
Even though I know I have to take off all my nail polish and toenail polish tomorrow – for surgery – I had to freshen up my nails last night. I can’t not paint my nails on Friday night. It’s like I have some sort of psychosis.
Julep “Jenn” is a creamy milk chocolate polish. It’s like Willy Wonka’s chocolate river!
This is two coats of “Jenn” over Julep Oxygen Bonding Base Coat and under Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
January 2018 Ipsy Bag – Game Face
I gotta get through these boxes before they cut me open!
This month’s “Game Face” ipsy bag is totally 80s! The products are anything but retro. The first product that caught my eye was the F.A.R.A.H BRUSHES Z-Tweeze Dual Ended Tweezer – I’ve never seen a product like this before and I consider myself a tweezer aficionado. One end has the usual wide slant tweezers, but the other end has pointy ones. I cannot wait to start attacking ingrown hairs with these!
Also in this month’s bag: CAKE BY CAKE BEAUTY Heavy Cream Intensive Body Balm; DIRTY LITTLE SECRET COSMETICS Eyeshadow in “Sangria” (sparkly red eyeshadow – yes please!); THEBALM COSMETICS Mary-Lou Manizer; and ANDALOU NATURALS Argan & Shea Styling Cream.
If you’d like to try Ipsy – click here. I’ll earn 250 points if you sign up through my link.
January 2018 Birchbox – Find Your Happy
Even though I forgot to pick the products in my Julep box, I did remember to pick for my Birchbox. I picked the curated box, of course. Not that any products stood out to me, but the sample choices were either lame or repeats.
Of all the brands I get in Subscription Boxes, I’d have to say that I get Smashbox the most. I get a Smashbox product every single month. I’m not mad about getting another Smashbox Photo Finish Radiance Primer – I actually like this pearly primer. (I got it in September’s ipsy.)
Also in this month’s box: Oribe Gold Lust Repair & Restore Shampoo and Conditioner (So glad I got equal sizes of BOTH products); Laura Geller New York Fortifying Lashes Eyelash Primer (why?); and Clark’s Botanicals Age Defying Radiance Cream.
If you would like to try Birchbox, click on my referral link – https://www.birchbox.com/invite/5453f – I’ll get 50 points if you join.
Dorothy, DUH
If I was one of the Golden Girls, I would OBVIOUSLY be Dorothy. I have the fierce wit and I have the height. The only thing I don’t have is a sketchy ex-husband with a dumb mustache. (Don’t worry, honey – that’s isn’t a hint.)
Fresh Paint “Dorothy” is a fierce metallic pink. At first, I thought it was a dupe of Zoya “Bobbi”, but “Bobbie” is darker and brighter. Phew, I didn’t end up with a dupe. I’d almost call “Dorothy” a rose gold, but it’s more like a rose silver. Is rose silver even a real thing?
I started with Glisten & Glow Ridge Filling Base Coat, then painted two coats of “Dorothy”. I topped with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
I fixed the cuticles on my thumb and index finger with Julep Vanish! They look so much better now – color me relieved.
Snow Princess
It’s fucking cold. I feel like I can’t get warm…until I get into my car. For some reason, my car is hot. Then I’m driving and trying to take my jacket off. Dangerous, I know. This weather is going to kill me.
ANYWAY, I did Snow Princess nails. They are NOT Frozen nails, they are Snow Princess nails. There IS a difference.
After Sinful Colors Base Coat, I started with two coats of Sinful Colors “Tokyo Pearl”. I think “Tokyo Pearl” is my most used polish – I’ve used HALF the bottle. That’s like…$1 worth of nail polish! I topped them with Sinful Colors “Flake Out”, which is a silvery microglitter, with matte blue glitter and holographic star glitters. There weren’t enough stars – I was fishing for each one. It was so fucking annoying. I only got one star per nail, before I gave up. I finished up with Glisten & Glow Top Coat.
My cuticles need help. Please don’t even look at my index finger – it’s like my cuticle is taking over my whole fingernail – I need to melt and scrape it. My hands are dry, but I’m keeping them hydrated and lotioned up…but the hangnail struggle is real. I’m gonna try working on them before my next manicure…